Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Busy busy busy...

I've always heard that the older you get, the busier you become, but it's never really meant anything to me before... until recently, that is.

I was looking at my Outlook Calendar (which I live by) this evening at the next few weeks worth of activities and I couldn't help but notice an obvious absence of blank space on it. While the temptation is certainly present for me to look at my full calendar and be negative about the lack of free time I have in the coming weeks, I think I'm going to resist.

Just because my calendar keeps getting more things on it, doesn't mean I have to become one of those people who is always complaining about how busy they are and about how they never have time to do anything. The honest truth is that my calendar is full right now because I allow it to be full. If I want more free time, all I have to do is say, "No" to something. If I want even more free time, I all I have to do is say "No" to something else... and on and on it goes.

But I don't say no, because when it comes right down to it, I enjoy 90% of what I spend my time doing. Sure there are things that I occasionally HAVE to do - not because I want to but simply because they have to be done. Those types of things are few and far between though and consist mostly of activities like: driving to work, mowing the grass, doing chores, going to the occasional meeting at work that wastes my time, driving home from work, and few others.

However, most of the things that consume my time are either enjoyable to me in some way or another or they make a positive difference in my life or the lives of others. The majority of time is spent on the following activities: working, sleeping, hanging out with DW, hanging out with friends/family, watching OU football, worshiping, writing, reading, volunteering, advising two student organizations, teaching a class, and watching an occasional movie.

While I'm just like everyone else in that I'd love to have a few extra hours at the end of each day, the truth is that if I had more hours, I'd probably just spend them doing more of one or two of the things above. Sure... there are certainly things I'd like to add to the list (exercising more frequently and traveling are two that immediately come to mind), but the truth is that my life is filled up with things that are all (for the most part) personally satisfying to me in one way or another.

Instead of complaining about how busy I am, my goal for the rest of September is to be thankful for the freedom I have to decide how I spend my time and for all of the many opportunities I have to spend that time doing things I enjoy. Instead of complaining about how busy I am, I will make a concerted effort to spend (waste) less time doing and concerning myself with things that have little to no long-term value while spending more of my time on those things that bring significance to my own life and/or to the life of others.